Elsevier, the information analytics business specialising in science and health, announced winners of the Scopus Researcher Awards 2017 in three categories at Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, Australia. The awards were open to and recognise the academic contribution of Australia and New Zealand’s researchers who are building their careers in academic research, as well as to help them gain broad recognition at home and abroad for their work.

First launched in 2010, the awards aim to help support early career researchers in their quest to advance the frontiers of science across disciplines.

This year, Elsevier introduced three new award categories to recognise innovative and original research across different fields of science.

The award recipients, representing academic research excellence in three different categories, are:

Excellence in Innovative Research Award

Winner : Professor Rajkumar Buyya, University of Melbourne

Runner-up : Professor Peng Shi, University of Adelaide

Excellence in Sustainability Research Award

Winner : Professor Ranjith Pathegama Gamage, Monash University

Runner-up : Professor Paresh Kumar Narayan, Deakin University

Women in Research Award

Winner : Professor Monika Janda, Queensland University of Technology

Runner-up : Dr. Michelle Colgrave, CSIRO

The Women in Research Award was created to inspire and encourage more female researchers who choose to pursue academic work in response to the findings of Elsevier’s benchmark report, “Gender in the Global Research Landscape”,which highlights thatdespite their lower scientific output when compared to their male counterparts, female researchers in Australia are on par in research quality.

“The award categories recognise outstanding researchers who have made significant contributions to research in Australia and New Zealand. The quality of the applicants was excellent and we were heartened to see the strength of applications from women. The decision process was not easy, we have to try our very best to find a winner in each category,” said Professor Aidan Byrne, Provost at University of Queensland and Chief Panellist of the Scopus Researcher Awards 2017.

“Elsevier is honoured to recognise these highly talented researchers. In a digitally connected world, the Australasia region represents excellence in academic research with a strong spirit of innovation and originality,” said Richard Baskus, Elsevier’s Regional Account Director for Australia and New Zealand. “The winners of the Scopus Researcher Awards 2017 are all excellent examples of this interconnectedness. Our aim at Elsevier is to support researchers in their discoveries that will bring great benefits to society.”

The award ceremony, held at Powerhouse Museum, was attended by guests representing Australia and New Zealand’s top scientific fraternity, including guest-of-honor, Scientia Professor Veena Sahajwalla, Director of Centre for Sustainable Materials Research and Technology (SMaRT) at UNSW Australia, who was one of the award presenters.

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About ElsevierElsevier is a global information analytics business that helps institutions and professionals advance healthcare, open science and improve performance for the benefit of humanity. Elsevier provides digital solutions and tools in the areas of strategic research management, R&D performance, clinical decision support and professional education, including ScienceDirect, Scopus, SciVal, ClinicalKey and Sherpath. Elsevier publishes over 2,500 digitized journals, including The Lancet and Cell, more than 38,000 e-book titles and many iconic reference works, including Gray's Anatomy. Elsevier is part of RELX Group, a global provider of information and analytics for professionals and business customers across industries. www.elsevier.com